JOHN McGUIGAN is in absolutely no doubt that the Three Spires can become the new Twin Towers.

The strategic director of city development reckons Coventry stands a serious chance of becoming home to England's new football stadium. A very serious chance.

He brushes aside potential stumbling blocks like the #250 million cost, doubling the size of Coventry City's already planned Arena 2001, and Birmingham.

Quite simply, Mr McGuigan believes that if the government wants it to be here, it can be here. You only have to look at what happened with the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff and Hampden Park in Glasgow to realise that, he argues.

The biggest problem Coventry faces is getting the government and the Football Association to make up their minds - and quickly. The last thing the city wants is a replay of what happened in Birmingham when millions were poured down the drain trying to entice the Millennium Dome away from the bright lights of London.

Mr McGuigan said: "The fundamental decision is whether the FA and the government want to see it outside London.

"We do know that we can reconfigure the Arena stadium and grow it to 80,000 to 90,000 on the existing site. We tilt it round slightly.

"And we know that we are two to three years ahead of any other new-build development because we have got planning approval for the project and, in terms of accessibility, it is a site second to none."

The city council didn't waste any time in firing off a letter to the government and the FA in the wake of the collapse of the deal to rebuild Wembley amid spiralling costs. They're still waiting for a response and probably won't get one until the election is over.

Home Secretary Jack Straw, meanwhile, has said he "unquestionably" supported the "idea of major sporting venues outside of London". His comment should not be taken lightly. He is, after all, also chairman of the national stadium committee.

"What we do not want to do is put an enormous amount of time and energy and resource into something if there is no political will to make it happen. That's the difficulty," said Mr McGuigan.

"Our very open stance is that we are ready, we can take it, we can deliver, we could start the bulldozers next week if you want."

Given that Arena 2001 is already at least two years behind schedule, the powers-that-be might take some convincing. Project bosses are said to be reviewing their business plan and continuing discussions with the NEC and Advantage West Midlands.

"They anticipate within about six weeks being able to be clear about the way forward," said Mr McGuigan.

One of the problems has been finding a home for the family of travellers living on the site. They were supposed to have been moved on in January. Five months on and they're still there - as is the last gas holder which was meant to have been blown up in May.

Rumours that the club was struggling to find the #172 million for the complex, which includes leisure facilities, a superstore and a rail station, have been denied.

Critics might argue that if Coventry cannot get its act together on its own stadium then how could it handle one for the entire nation.

"If the government and the FA decide they are bringing the national stadium to Coventry then the monetary difficulty that we have been dealing with gets pushed aside," he said.

"We believe that for #250 million max we will get a state-of-the-art arena."

London is, however, not the only city that Coventry has to compete against. Birmingham has not surprisingly also thrown its hat into the ring. And on the face of it, as the second city it would appear a stronger contender.

Mr McGuigan believes Coventry has got the advantage over Birmingham in terms of planning and location, but does not want to get drawn into a fight with the city next-door.

"We are not trying to get into a competition with Birmingham because we will end up fighting each other when the real issue is whether the stadium is coming out of London," he said.

And then there's the NEC. The NEC Group has already offered to manage Arena 2001, but would it drop Coventry like a hot potato if its home city of Birmingham won the day?

"The NEC Group is naturally, fundamentally involved in Birmingham's discussions on a prospective national stadium. With 25 years of management expertise, we believe we could manage such a stadium alongside our existing venue," said Barry Cleverdon, chief executive of the NEC Group.

"The NEC Group is also delighted to have been involved with providing consultancy to Coventry City Football Club relating to its own planned new stadium. We very much hope that our involvement continues in this excellent scheme.

"If a scenario were to emerge where both schemes go ahead we as a company would have to look very seriously at the situation at that time.

The ball is very much in the govern-ment's court. While out on the campaign trial in Coventry a few weeks ago, Prime Minister Tony Blair care-fully deflected the pass to Mr Straw's committee.

"I really don't think it's a decision I should take as Prime Minister," he said.